Betting has traditionally been the domain of sports and sports fans. Obviously, the roots of the game run a lot deeper than that, as it has always been an excellent way to settle differences. What other method is better to see how serious you are about your opinion than by putting some money on it?
Most sportsbooks offer tens of thousands of bets daily, on hundreds of different sports, events and matches. Whether it’s local leagues or the big football championships, there’s always plenty of bettors who want to take the entertainment and enjoyment to a new level. And the potential to win money is just an added benefit.
Rather surprisingly, or perhaps just naturally as we live in a world that grows smaller every day, people have started betting on politics and entertainment. Basically, anything that has uncertain but perhaps predictable outcomes. The great presidential races of the USA are an excellent example of this, but there’s plenty more than that to the market.
Brexit, Boris, Trump and other markets
In recent years, perhaps the most influential example of political betting was Brexit. Whatever your opinion of this political decision was and is, you can’t deny that the voting and the elections that followed were very interesting. No surprise then that a lot of people put down money on the different possible outcomes.
British bookmakers such as William Hill have been offering a wide selection of odds and possible bets for years. And as players placed their bets on leaving or staying, one can’t help but wonder if it was any different than stockbrokers shorting their stocks or investing long-term. Political betting can be fun, and even rewarding when you’re right.
Trump’s rise to power saw similar bets laid, and the same applied to his struggle against Biden. Shame we couldn’t lay bets on when he is going to concede the win!
How betting on politics works
It’s pretty simple: just like any other betting. You simply choose which outcome you think is more likely, and then decide if the odds offered are worth your time. Odds simply mean how much you are going to get paid, on top of your bet, if you’re right. Of course, no one is going to pay you for being wrong.
Likewise, the betting companies are pretty wise when it comes to odds, so they are not going to give you awesome odds for things that are almost sure to happen. On the other hand, the initial odds for things like Brexit were giving a far better return for leaving than they did for staying.
Of course, this sort of action is very limited to issues that intrigue the whole world, and you’d be hard-pressed to find betting markets for Finnish elections, as an example. While we wait for that to happen there are plenty of other things to bet on, from ice hockey championships to football, tennis, esports and a growing list of sports we’ve all come to love.